Anthony Pettis looks for his second victory over Benson Henderson in UFC 164 on Saturday in Milwaukee. NAM Y. HUH, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

FIGHT OF THE WEEK

BENSON HENDERSON VS. ANTHONY PETTIS

When: Saturday

Where: Milwaukee

How to watch: UFC 164 main card at 7 p.m. on pay-per-view; UFC 164 prelims at 5 p.m. on Fox Sports 1; and UFC 164 prelims at 3 p.m. on Facebook.

Outlook: Henderson (19-2) tries to become the winningest UFC lightweight champion when he makes his fourth title defense in a rematch against Pettis (16-2). Pettis won a five-round unanimous decision to claim the WEC 155-pound title against Henderson in 2010.

Prediction: Pettis is probably the most creative striker in the UFC. His arsenal features capoeira-inspired kicks, flying knees off the cage and his famous highlight reel “Showtime kick.” Henderson has heavy kicks and has proved he can go toe-to-toe with his boxing skills. Henderson has the edge in wrestling, but Pettis has improved by training with Bellator welterweight champ Ben Askren. Pettis’ dynamic striking gives him the edge and he will defeat Henderson.

Record in 2013 picks: 19-9

CARLOS ARIAS

Anthony Pettis and Benson Henderson met for the first time at World Extreme Cagefighting 53 in 2010. It was the final card for WEC, which was absorbed by the UFC.

Pettis and Henderson engaged in an exciting back-and-forth battle with Pettis putting an exclamation point on his five-round unanimous decision victory with his famous “Showtime kick,” in which he ran up the side of the cage, launched and nailed Henderson with a head kick in the final seconds of the bout.

“The whole card was amazing,” Pettis said of WEC 53. “They had some great fights on the undercard and me and Ben Henderson put on a performance. You have guys like me and Ben Henderson, very competitive, know how to fight everywhere, you know you are going to get a great fight. That's what you got, an amazing fight.”

Said Henderson: “It was a good fight, a tough fight, and it didn't go my way. I lost the decision and it helped make me a better fighter. Because of that fight I went on to the UFC gold.”

Both fighters have evolved since their first meeting and will be much different fighters when they step inside the octagon for the rematch at UFC 164 on Saturday in Pettis' hometown of Milwaukee.

“It's funny how it works out,” Pettis said. “I remember coming over (to the UFC) and reading all the posts and people were saying, ‘These WEC guys have no chance. They are inferior to the UFC guys.’ You look a few years later at who's on top of the division, Henderson, Pettis and (Donald) Cerrone is not too far behind.”

Pettis said he had a bit of a chip on his shoulder when he first came into the UFC.

“Yeah, we were fighting the best in the world. That's it,” Pettis said of his time in WEC. “We were fighting the best in the world at 155 (pounds) and just because we were fighting in a different (organization) people didn't give us the respect we deserved. That being said, me and Benson are totally different fighters now. We're way better than we were when we were in the WEC and that shows in our fights.”

Pettis has put together three consecutive knockout victories in the UFC, all of which belong in the spectacular category. A title shot had eluded him because a string of bad luck and injuries, but he will finally get his shot at Henderson this weekend.

“After I got the knee injury, I was depressed, man,” Pettis said. “I was really depressed. I was questioning everything like, ‘Why is this happening to me? Will I ever get a title shot?’ The way it turned out, a negative turned into a positive, and it's even better. I'm in my hometown for this fight.”

Pettis said he respects Henderson as a fighter and what he has accomplished, but he is confident he will be victorious.

“I expect a finish,” Pettis said. “I'm not looking to go five rounds with this guy. I'm well-prepared to go five rounds with this guy, but I will expect nothing less than a finish. I'm going to finish this guy quick. I don't want to be out there five rounds going back and forth. I want my hand raised and I want that belt quick.”

Henderson would become the UFC's winningest lightweight champion if he can make a record fourth successful title defense by beating Pettis. He is tied with B.J. Penn and Frankie Edgar with three successful lightweight title defenses.

“I expect it to be a full MMA fight,” Henderson said of the rematch. “It will be on the ground, standing up, against the cage, I expect it to go everywhere. It's going to be a full MMA fight.”

NOTES

Josh Barnett of Fullerton returns to the UFC for the first time in 11 years when he takes on Frank Mir in a matchup of former UFC heavyweight champions in one of the featured bouts at UFC 164. The match pits Barnett's catch wrestling against Mir's Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Barnett counts 20 submissions among his 32 victories, while Mir owns nine submissions among his 16 victories.

“Of all the jiu-jitsu guys out there, Frank hardly moves like a jiu-jitsu stylist at all,” Barnett told Sherdog.com. “His style more resembles mine, except he doesn’t have good wrestling. He’s constantly attacking for subs all up and down the body.”

UFC and Fox officials have made a late change to broadcast plans for Wednesday's UFC Fight Night 28: Teixeira vs. Bader event, and Fox Sports 1 will now feature six hours of live fights and coverage leading up to the debut of “The Ultimate Fighter 18.” The pre-fight show for UFC Fight Night 28 airs at 1 p.m., the prelims at 2 p.m., and the main card, which features Glover Teixeira vs. Ryan Bader in the main event, at 4 p.m. “The Ultimate Fighter 18” with rival coaches Ronda Rousey and Meisha Tate debuts at 7 p.m. ...

Bellator MMA signed French heavyweight Cheick Kongo, who was 11-6-1 in the UFC, Bellator officials announced Wednesday. Kongo will make his Bellator debut in the Season 9 heavyweight tournament.

“After my contract was up in the UFC, I really wanted to take some time and reflect on everything,” Kongo said in a statement. “After talking to the people around me, especially someone like my longtime friend in (Quinton) 'Rampage' (Jackson), he told me how well Bellator has been treating him and what we can do with Bellator, and after getting to know (Bellator Chairman & CEO) Bjorn Rebney, it just seemed like the right fit for me. I know I have plenty of fight left in me, and my fight in October is the first step to getting that Bellator Heavyweight Title.”

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